Mysore is a fast growing city. With the advent of the IT sector it is expanding. To keep up its image of a tourist city and to maintain high standards for the international companies it has to undergo a change, a change in its public transportation system. The site chosen for such a public transportation system, i.e., a bus terminus, is located adjacent to the railway station. The primary reason to choose this site was to integrate the railway and the bus services. The basic idea was to sandwich strategically, the city bus terminus between the railway station and the proposed intra city bus terminus. The site is located in the central business district of Mysore. It has four major roads connecting it. The North West node leads to the entrance of the railway station. The location of this site is such that the 70% of the buses come towards the south west node and the remaining 30% of the buses come towards the north eastern node. The level difference between the highest point, which is the north western node and the lowest point of the site is 6m. 
After experimenting with about 60 different options the design evolved around a simple idea. The level difference of the site was taken as an advantage for the pedestrian users. The city bus terminus was spread at ±0.0 m and the pedestrian access was provided at +3.75 m which connected the nodes of the site. The entries and the exits of the buses and private vehicles were designed such that the vehicles always remained on the left hand side of the road. There were 3 sets of ramps on each side and 12 in total, of which 4 of them lead to the bus terminus at the lower level and 4 more were designed for the proposed upper level terminus. In addition 4 more ramps were designed for the private vehicle parking and drop off which was at the lowest level. The circulation of the vehicles was made unidirectional in the design. The form of the terminus evolved form the circulation pattern, an oval shape meant that the buses had an easy turning radius. All the other services including the platform modules and the administration blocks developed inside this ellipse. 8 platforms with 20 loading and 7 unloading bays were designed. The administration blocks along with a restaurant and a proposed shopping mall were tucked inside the inner boundary of the platforms. These inner blocks were developed around a central plaza with the idea of streets and open spaces. These blocks were also connected directly by the only pedestrian access. Service towers were provided directly from the parking to the pedestrian access level.
To view the Ground floor plan in pdf please CLICK HERE
To view the Basement plan in pdf please CLICK HERE
To view the Drawings in Auto cad format please CLICK HERE
The pedestrian path ways were designed on the principle of people moving from open - semi open – semi closed to a complete enclosure. The open- semi open - semi closed areas were designed as display galleries, where a wide range of works, right form the information on the bus routes to art works could be displayed. Where as the completely enclosed areas of the pedestrian pathways were designed as video galleries with glass cladding on the inside, to add reflection of the screens as an effect. The railings were designed such that the periphery of these bridges could not used by vendors or hawkers, instead a dedicated area was assigned for them near the nodes. In addition to the main pedestrian bridges a service bridge was provided which connected the drop off point directly. These bridges were also linked to the parking directly through service towers.
The module of the platforms was kept simple and direct. The waiting area in the platform faced the bus lanes. Each platform had its own commercial space and a set of toilets. The upper floor of the module was for the proposed upper level bus terminus. On the upper level of this module seating was provided at the outer edge rather than at the center, in its place instead a cut out was provided to allow visual connectivity to the lower level. The structural system was designed to carry the load of an upper level bus terminus. Double beams with reinforced trusses were designed to distribute the loads directly on inner and outer shear walls.
All the administration blocks, including a restaurant and a proposed shopping mall were accommodated at the central portion of the terminus. These buildings evolved with a central plaza and a street type of designing. Each of these blocks were designed according to the sun path, glass was used liberally either on the northern facade or on the facades which had shadows casted from the pedestrian bridge. Every block had its own greenery and informal spaces. The stairs, handrails, partition walls and even the windows were customized.
The restaurant was designed such that the seating area always got diffused sunlight. Rotatable louvers were provided where the seating was facing the water body to allow full length view and to avoid direct sunlight. The form of the restaurant was a result of the sun path and angle study, at different time of the day during different months. The form was optimized such that the interiors got maximum shade irrespective of time and day. The type of toilets seen in the restaurant is typical to the whole project. The design of the toilets included hidden services accessed from the outside, hidden WC water tanks and lighting by diffused sunlight.
